WACO, Texas (AP) — — Jaden Nixon returned the second-half kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown, and ninth-ranked Oklahoma State beat No. 16 Baylor 36-25 on Saturday in a rematch of last year’s Big 12 championship game.
Nixon’s return started a flurry of 39 combined points in the third quarter. He found an open gap in the middle of the field and then broke free from the grasp of Devyn Bobby at the Oklahoma State 35.
Oklahoma State quarterback Spencer Sanders continued his outstanding play. He finished 20-of-29 passing for 181 yards with a touchdown and an interception and ran 14 times for 75 yards.
The Cowboys (4-0, 1-0 Big 12) also beat Baylor in the regular season last year, but came up inches short of their first conference title since 2011 when the Bears made a fourth-down stop just short of the end zone in the final seconds of the championship game.
After Nixon’s return, Baylor (3-2, 1-1 Big 12) responded with Blake Shapen’s 49-yard TD pass to Monaray Baldwin, who added a 70-yard catch-and-run score later in the third. True freshman Richard Reese had a 1-yard TD run on a short drive set up when Christian Morgan intercepted Sanders.
Another long kickoff return for Oklahoma State, with Brennan Presley taking it to midfield after Reese scored, was followed immediately by Braydon Johnson’s incredible 49-yard catch and then Dominic Richardson’s 1-yard run. The Cowboys added a 19-yard field goal after Shapen’s fourth-down incompletion from the Baylor 33 gave Oklahoma State the short field.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
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Sanders threw seven picks in his two games against Baylor last season, including four in the Big 12 title game, but he was more efficient this time.
Shapen completed 28 of 40 passes for 345 yards and Baldwin caught seven passes for 174 yards. Reese had 85 yards and a score on 17 carries. Six of the true freshman’s TDs have come in Baylor’s three home games.
THE TAKEAWAY
Oklahoma State: The Cowboys were solid coming off their open date to play outside of Stillwater for the first time, and faced their first ranked opponent. Oklahoma State some highlight catches for Sanders, including Bryson Green’s contested leaping catch in the back of the end zone for an 8-yard TD on their opening drive. On Johnson’s 49-yard catch in the third quarter, he reached back and through a defender to make the grab near the sideline, and when twisting and turning, his left foot slid out of bounds just short of the end zone.
Baylor: The Bears had won nine consecutive home games since a 42-3 loss to Oklahoma State in the 2020 regular-season finale. That game was pushed back two months because of COVID-19, and played when Baylor was without 47 people — players, coaches and support personnel — and had one full-time offensive assistant coach at the game.
POLL IMPLICATIONS
Oklahoma State will certainly remain in the top 10, and maybe even climb a spot. Baylor could hang in near the bottom of the poll since both of its losses are against Top 25 teams, or could fall completely out of the rankings.
UP NEXT
Oklahoma State plays Texas Tech next Saturday at home.
Baylor has a Saturday off before playing its next game at West Virginia on Oct. 13, a Thursday night.
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